Israeli bulldozers start work as West Bank settlement ban ends

Israeli bulldozers start work as West Bank settlement ban ends

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Israel settlements bulldozer

Fast work: a digger begins clearing land in the West Bank settlement of Adam, north of Jerusalem, today as the construction ban came to an end

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Israeli settlers

Defiance: Israeli settlers celebrate the end of a 10-month ban on building

Fast work: a digger begins clearing land in the West Bank settlement of Adam, north of Jerusalem, today as the construction ban came to an end

Bulldozers were in action on the West Bank today as the end of a ban on the construction of new Jewish settlements threatened to derail peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Residents of the Ariel settlement woke to hear digging and clearing work under way as part of a plan to erect 50 Jewish homes only hours after the10-month prohibition on building expired.

TV footage of concrete being poured into holes and settlers using shovels was also broadcast as hardliners emphasised their determination to press ahead with new construction. Elsewhere, however, activity was muted as Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged settlers to show "restraint and responsibility" to help keep the recently resumed peace talks on track.

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas had warned that peace talks would be a "waste of time" unless the freeze on settlement building was extended, but he has not yet quit the negotiations. He said there would be no "quick decision" over the discussions.

This has raised hopes that the face-to-face talks between Mr Netanyahu and Mr Abbas could continue if the amount of new settlement activity remains minimal — although Mr Abbas, in Paris yesterday, said there was only one choice for Israel: "Either peace or settlements."

Some observers believe the Israeli government is exerting strong behind-the-scenes pressure on settlers, amounting to something close to an unofficial ban on further building, to prevent the collapse of the talks. Oded Revivi, mayor of the Efrat settlement, said banks and developers were reluctant to commit to new building projects because of fear that construction would be stopped again.

One settler leader, Dani Dayan, said land-moving equipment would begin laying the groundwork for new Jewish homes in West Bank settlements but that only a few hundred homes would be built in the next few months.

An Israeli military ban on Palestinians entering Jewish areas of the West Bank during the week-long Sukhot holiday could also slow construction — because much of the work is done by Palestinian labourers.

The end of the construction ban, regarded by the Palestinians as a critical issue for the success of any peace deal, comes despite American efforts to work out a compromise over the past week.